Latin name of the genus and species of plant claimed: Dendranthemaxc3x97hybrida. 
Variety denomination: MN98-M91-1.
The present invention comprises a new and distinctive chrysanthemum plant, hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98MN98-M91-1xe2x80x99. This new cultivar was the result of a cross in 1989 between Dendranthema weyrichii and Dendranthemaxc3x97grandiflora. More specifically, the breeding program which resulted in the production of the new cultivar was carried out at St. Paul, Minn. The female or seed parent of xe2x80x98MN98-M91-1xe2x80x99 was a Dendranthema weyrichii xe2x80x98Pink Bombxe2x80x99, commercially available from White Flower Farms, Conn. having the following characteristics: (a) the plant habit is prostrate and the plant spreads via rhizomes to form a large mat after the first year; (b) the plant dimensions are that the plant has a diameter of about 1.5xe2x80x2 and is about 5-6xe2x80x3 tall; (c) the plant is hardy in zones 4-9 (Southeast)/Zone 10 (west); (d) the flower of the plant is a single daisy, having light lavender-colored ray florets and central disc florets with yellow pollen; (e) the plant has leaves that are dark green in color, with a very shiny leaf surface (glossy), and glabrous leaf margins that are deeply incised; and (f) the plant tends to rosette, needs cold treatment to flower consistently, flowering can be sporadic with gaps in the plant architecture and the plant is an obligate short-day plant. The male or pollen parent of xe2x80x98MN98-M91-1xe2x80x99 was a Dendranthemaxc3x97grandiflora which is commercially available from Yoder Brothers, Inc., Barberton, Ohio having the following characteristics: (a) the plant habit is cushion; (b) the plant dimensions are that the plant is similar to other cushion types commercially available from Yoder Brothers, Inc., such as, but not limited to the variety, xe2x80x98Soft Cheriexe2x80x99; (c) the plant is hardy in zones 6-9 (Southeast)/Zone 10 (west); (d) the flower is a single or duplex daisy, possibly orange or bronze ray florets, central disc florets with yellow pollen; (f) the plant has leaves that are similar to other Yoder Brothers, Inc. cushion series chrysanthemums; and (d) the plant is a facultative short-day plant. The resulting seed, identified as 90-287-185 was collected. In 1994, a plant of 90-287-185 was crossed as the male parent with plants identified as 90-275-27, a University of Minnesota inbred parental selection, as the female parent and the resulting seeds, identified as cross number 92-333-3 collected. In 1997, a plant identified as xe2x80x98Centerpiecexe2x80x99 which is available from Dooley Gardens (Hutchinson, Minn.), was crossed as a male parent with plants of 95-332-3 and the resulting hybrid seeds constituted the cross xe2x80x98MN98-M91-1xe2x80x99 in which the genotype xe2x80x98MN98-M91-1xe2x80x99 was selected.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal or stem cuttings taken 1993 through 2000 at St. Paul, Minn., U.S.A. has demonstrated that the characteristics of the new cultivar as herein described are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of such asexual propagation.
It was found that the cultivar of the present invention:
(a) exhibits extreme hybrid vigor;
(b) develops, in its second and subsequent years after planting, when grown in the fall under natural daylength and without the application of growth regulators, into a flowering herbaceous shrub having a plant height of from about 2.75 to about 3.5 feet and a spread from about 4.0 to about 5.5 feet,
(c) exhibits, in its second and subsequent years after planting and during the fall season (August-October), a massive floral display;
(d) exhibits superior winter hardiness, including frost tolerance; and
(e) exhibits self-pinching.
The MN98-M91-1 cultivar has not been observed under all possible environmental condition to date. Accordingly, it is possible that the phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in the environment, such as temperature, light intensity, and day length.
When the new cultivar of the present invention is compared to xe2x80x98Yellow Sandyxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,759), it is found to exhibit a more spreading and prolific habit accompanied with a massive floral display in its second and subsequent years after planting. Reference is made to attached Table 1 below which compares certain characteristics of MN98-M91-1 to xe2x80x98Yellow Sandyxe2x80x99.